A Jim Jordan Speakership Could Change GOP’s Direction

Written by Hudson Crozier

What’s happening: The Republican-controlled House plans to vote today on their speaker nominee Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH). This comes after Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA), the previous nominee, dropped out of the election over a lack of support.

• The clock is ticking: Lawmakers are once again trying to avoid a government shutdown next month due to disagreements on spending, adding urgency to the speaker race.

Why it matters: Jordan, supported by hardline Republicans, could change the House’s approach to several key issues.

• Illegal migration: Jordan has been pushing for stronger border enforcement, blaming President Joe Biden’s policies for unprecedented rates of illegal migration.

• Foreign aid: The lawmaker says he will fully shut down the flow of aid to Ukraine if elected speaker. However, he has called for sending resources to Israel to support its war against Palestinian terrorists.

• Spending: Though his approach has been more moderate than some Republicans, Jordan wants to cut federal spending on “woke” agendas and bring down the national debt.

He might have a chance: Assuming that all House Democrats oppose him, Jordan must win the support of all but four Republicans to be elected. Though the number of holdouts is unclear, he has made significant progress in winning some over.

Will he let the GOP down? Jordan has famously led the charge in scrutinizing the federal government for working with Big Tech platforms to censor conservative viewpoints. However, he has been critical of antitrust legislation to end online censorship, which is likely to ramp up ahead of the 2024 election.

• Zoom in: In addition to being heavily funded by Big Tech corporations like Google, Jordan stopped Section 230 reform and bipartisan antitrust efforts.